“Boys?”
“Dad.” Dex swallowed past the lump in his throat. “Dad, how are you holding up?”
Sloane stepped up beside Dex, his hand coming to rest on his lower back. Dex took comfort in his mate’s touch, feeling himself calm.
“I’m okay. When this is over, the three of us are going to Vegas. I love you, boys. Be good, and don’t give these sons of bitches—”
There was scuffling before the room went silent.
“Dad?” Cael stepped forward, but there was no reply. He was gone. The quiet didn’t last long. Cael headed for Sparks, and Dex caught hold of him.
“You have some fucking nerve,” Cael spat out, thrusting a finger at Sparks. “After the hell you’ve put us through, you hook up with our dad? After what you did to my brother? How could you look him in the eye, knowing what you’ve done, who you are?”
“Cael. Now is not the time,” Dex said gently.
Cael turned his blazing gray eyes on Dex. “Did you know about this?”
For fuck’s sake. This wasn’t the time. He knew his brother was hurt and angry, but their father’s life was on the line. When Dex didn’t reply, Cael’s expression went from angry to hurt, and Dex flinched.
“You knew.” Cael shook his head in disbelief. “You knew and you kept it from me?”
“It wasn’t my place to tell,” Dex said softly, hoping Cael would understand.
“Not your place?” Cael pushed Dex away from him. “You’re my brother.” Cael rounded on Sparks again. “You put my dad’s life on the line. He had a right to know what you are.”
“He knows.”
“What?”
Sparks let out a sigh. “Your father knows I’m TIN.”
Dex stared at her. “You actually told him?”
Sparks shook her head. “I was going to, but he beat me to it. Told me I didn’t have to say anything, that he’s not as oblivious or naïve as we believe him to be.”
“We?” Cael folded his arms over his chest. “What the hell do we have to do with it?”
“You can be angry at me all you want, but I had my reasons for not telling him who I really work for. What’s your excuse?”
“Excuse me?” Cael was indignant.
“While you two went on your secret missions, getting kidnapped, tortured, putting yourselves in all kinds of danger, keeping him in the dark, thinking you were protecting him, he sat there waiting. And before you tell me I was the one sending you on those assignments, you better rethink that, because I sure as hell never sent you after Hogan. In fact, I took your team off that case, but you went behind my back and set off to settle your own score. That wasn’t the first time you went off on your own little missions, and it wasn’t the last either. Meanwhile, Tony waited for his boys to tell him the truth. When you didn’t, he went in search of answers.” Sparks stepped in front of them, her voice low and laced with hurt and anger. She pointed to both of them. “Your father has been playing this game longer than you, and he is far better at it than you know. I could have told him what you two were getting yourselves into, but I didn’t, because that’s your job. You’re his sons.”
Dex dropped his gaze, feeling like a shit for not having the balls to tell his dad the truth. They should have confided in Tony from the beginning. They’d convinced themselves they were protecting him, but all they’d managed to do was make him feel like he wasn’t good enough, as an agent or a father.
“You’re right,” Dex said.
Cael frowned at him. “What?”
“We fucked up. I fucked up.” Dex turned to his brother. “I should have told Dad everything from the beginning. I mean, he’s our sergeant, for crying out loud. Instead, I did what I always do, let my insecurities get the better of me.” Dex forced himself to meet Sparks’s gaze. “You’re absolutely right about everything. I got scared, and I thought if he didn’t know what was going on, that he’d be safe, and look where that got us?”
Cael’s expression softened, and he let out a sigh. “Dex, you can’t blame yourself for this. This is on the three of us. We should have told him.”
Dex nodded. He needed to learn to turn to his family for help if he needed it, rather than trying to carry the world on his shoulders. What they did was dangerous, and that wasn’t about to change, so he needed to change. He’d told himself as much before, but it turned out that changing was harder than expected. It always was when it concerned his family.
“We all have a lot to talk about, but right now, we need to worry about getting Tony back,” Dex said. He turned to Sparks. “What are you going to do when the Chairman calls for his answer?”
Sparks placed a finger to her lips and pointed up. Right, the room wasn’t secure. “What can I do? I’m going to give him what he wants. Come on. We need to secure Hudson.” She headed for the door and motioned for them to follow. They left the conference room and followed her to her office. When the door closed, she took a seat behind her desk. Tapping at the interface, she brought up the security connections to her office and the rest of Unit Alpha. To Dex’s astonishment, she shut everything down.